Music Legend, 63, Once Said Reunion Could Happen After Bandmate's Sudden Exit
Fans have long speculated whether the legendary band Bon Jovi would ever reunite — and with past interviews suggesting the frontman is open to it, now might be the time.
Last year, the 63-year-old rocker revealed he's only spoken to guitarist Richie Sambora twice since his unexpected departure from the group in 2013.
'It was a shock,' Jon Bon Jovi said of Sambora's sudden exit mid-tour. 'Nobody anticipated it, no one saw it coming.'
He recalled one of their last conversations on Easter Sunday, when they discussed their album What About Now. Sambora asked to stay home one more day — Bon Jovi agreed, expecting him back for their next show in Calgary.
However, Sambora called and said he wouldn't be returning. The guitarist later claimed he left partly because he felt the band had grown 'stale' — a claim Bon Jovi strongly disagrees with.
'I didn't think so, and the collective, we didn't think so,' he once told Classic Rock. 'I personally thought that everything was going incredibly f--king well. And it was never brought up—in the room, in the writing, in the recording, or during the first 20 shows of that tour.'
In that 2024 interview, Bon Jovi admitted the split still hurts and that they've barely kept in touch over the past 11 years.
'I've talked to him twice,' he said. 'He. Quit. The. Band. I swear to Christ there was never a fight, nothing… He wasn't kicked out, he quit. And he hasn't made any great overtures about coming back.'
After Sambora's exit, the band tapped guitarist Phil X to fill in. By 2014, Bon Jovi officially confirmed Sambora would not return.
Still, the door hasn't fully closed. In 2023, Sambora told PEOPLE a reunion 'could definitely happen.'
'It's just a question of when everybody's ready to go do it. It will be a big, massive kind of undertaking,' he said.
The following year, while promoting his album Forever, Bon Jovi echoed that sentiment. 'If he wanted to show up and play sometime, he knows the songs. Absolutely no animosity, I can promise you that,' he told Audacy Check In.
So with both sides seemingly open — what's the hold up? With bands like Oasis reuniting after 15 years and Black Sabbath returning for one final farewell, a Bon Jovi and Sambora reunion would be a perfect addition to the comeback trend.
Music Legend, 63, Once Said Reunion Could Happen After Bandmate's Sudden Exit first appeared on Parade on Jul 11, 2025
This story was originally reported by Parade on Jul 11, 2025, where it first appeared.
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"The interviews I can honestly say, were not a main focus for us," states Aries Dendy. "The more we did them and with whom we began to do them with, began to make them a staple for our website." Music of course is the core of and over the years, the e-zine has been honored to present its site viewers with First Listens. Including Saweetie's remix with Jhené Aiko & City Girls for "My Type." The single broke the websites record of visits, when it garnered more than 2 million hits as the only place to stream the track. Recent First Listen's have included singles from Ledisi, Jon B., Anthony Hamilton and M.C. Lyte. UB became quickly known for their exclusive First Look's as well, for album cover-art, promo pics and track-listings. Including releases from Rihanna, SWV, Mindless Behavior, Lil Wayne, Johnny Gill, and a host of others. With posthumously art work and tracklist for releases from Teena Marie and Vesta, for their final albums. 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It's more of us together!" – Ray J UBG's work relationship continued with the family, when Aries was asked to help design and operate the official websites for Brandy, Ray J and Sonja Norwood. As the family geared up to start filming the VH1 reality series "A Family Business." Over the course of the last two decades, vision has become a reality. UB has grown from a one leveled site about music, to an urban lifestyle website that has interviewed some of the world's biggest stars including; Denzel Washington, Kirk Franklin, Kimberly Elise, Ciara, Bobby Brown, Kevin Hart, Marlon Waynes, Charlamagne Tha God, T.I, Sheryl Lee Ralph, Kelly Rowland, Issa Rae and the late greats Mtume, Dr. Roscoe Brown and Teena Marie. To celebrate with the people who have made the brand a success, UBG will be hosting a 20 Year Anniversary Event in November. With a documentary on T M H and UBG, being released Spring 2026. For More on UBG: | | ABOUT URBANBRIDGEZ is an urban online lifestyle magazine. The site serves as an interface for urban-pop culture that includes exclusive interviews, news, contests, lifestyle trends. Contact: Jason Richards, View original content to download multimedia: SOURCE Urban Bridgez Group
